Merry Christmas to All!

Our home for the winter is Elite Resorts at Citrus Valley in Clermont, FL, only 4 miles from our location last year. You may remember that we mentioned it in an earlier blog this year when we were scoping out the place. Paul, Anne, and Scott had gone with us, and we had selected 3 spots near each other. (Of course Scott had to cancel his reservation since he’d be staying in NC to battle his cancer.) Paul and Anne arrived a couple weeks before us and were happy to see us upon our arrival.

After Bill and Terri left on the 1st, I helped decorate the clubhouse, and then it was time to put up our Christmas decorations. The weather has fluctuated greatly since we arrived, some days in the low 80s, some days in the high 40s. One night after our decorations were up, the cool air outside and the warm air inside produced a fog on the window creating a nice wintry effect.
This resort has a number of activities with even more to come after the first of the year when the remainder of the snowbirds arrive. One activity is every Fri. night at 6 it's happy hour (BYOB) followed by gator races at 7pm. What are gator races you ask? Well, there are 6 plastic gators on a table each numbered 1 – 6, and bets at 25 cents each are placed on the gator you think will win the race. Two large die are thrown, and if for instance a 3 and a 5 appear, then gator 3 and gator 5 are moved up one space until one of them reaches the finish line. The pot is divided among those who had the winning gator so depending on how many bets were placed and how many have the winner determines how much you win. I won $1 the first race, but our friend, Ed, was the only one with the winning gator on the last race and won $15.70!

On Dec. 13 a Toys For Tots event was held here, and everyone was to bring a new, unwrapped toy and a dish to share while the resort provided 6 foot long sub sandwiches. The turnout was beyond expectations with plenty of food and loads of toys under the tree including 3 bicycles! Florida’s version of Mr. and Mrs. Claus were in attendance (Santa was in shorts), and the local fire dept. brought their hook and ladder to transport all the gifts. When it came time to load, everyone in attendance formed two lines facing each other, and we passed the gifts from the tree to the truck…what fun! As a special surprise ladder rides were provided to all who wanted. What a treat not only for the grandkids in attendance but several adults also took a ride. I had planned on going but when I went back outside after the 50/50 drawing was announced, the ladder had a glitch and they had to stop giving rides, but I hear the view was spectacular.











The following Sat. afternoon a craft fair was held in the clubhouse. I took my hand painted ceramic ornaments as well as some other none craft items but they were things we’ve had in storage that we thought might make nice last minute gifts. I was pleasantly surprised that there were 8 other vendors besides me but there was basically no advertisement for it, so customers were minimal. However I did sell a pewter snowman tray for $3 so it wasn’t a total loss.

Other than that Russ has been playing golf once a week with a group who call themselves the Travel Golf Club. They play on a different course around the area each week and right now there are about 50 in the group but it’s supposed to grow to about 100 after the first of the year. I’ve participated in the power walking class a couple times and plan to do more after the holidays including joining the water aerobics class (the pool is supposed to be heated!)

We haven’t been to the parks much this month mainly because of the huge crowds, but Russ and I did see Chita Rivera narrate the Candlelight Processional a couple weeks ago. She was as wonderful as last year and sang along with most of the songs. And after the crafts fair, Russ wasn’t feeling well so I went by myself to see Whoopi Goldberg narrating the Processional. Me and everybody else in the world it seemed! The standby line was longer than I’d ever seen, and knowing I’d never get a seat for the 5pm show, I staked out a spot behind the ropes at the very back of the pavilion. You can still see and hear but not quite as good. Whoopi did an excellent job for her first time and was obviously a huge draw.

And what better time to see the narration of the nativity story than on Christmas Eve. Russ and I joined the crowds for the Candlelight Processional last night, just missing being seated for the 6:45 performance but being first in line for the 8:15 showing. Our seats were right on the center aisle about halfway back, just behind the reserved seating…perfect (except I didn't have my camera). Guest narrator was award winning actor Edward James Olmos, who did an excellent job…very moving and he even sang along. He dedicated what he called “the greatest story ever told” to our troops and to the Disney family, as he was a close friend of Roy Disney who passed away last week. We concluded the evening by watching the special holiday fireworks and enjoyed a leisurely walk back to the car. A lovely end to a wonderful evening.

Hope your holidays have been merry and bright, full of wonder and delight!

Thanksgiving

The past few weeks have been busy which means we’re once again behind on our blog. We’ll start from where we left off and catch you up over the next couple of posts.

Our last day at Long Key we walked the beach as we had many times before searching for “treasures”. Though there are rarely any shells, we collected pieces of coral, dried sponges of various sizes, and a nearly perfect discarded shell from a horseshoe crab. Not sure what we really plan to do with any of it, but we had fun. That morning we found that quite a large number of jellyfish and Portuguese-Man-of-War had washed up on the beach from the previous night’s storm, and you definitely needed to be careful where you walked! Further down we noticed a couple large birds perched in one of the dead trees. As we got closer, one of them flew off, but the other remained and we discovered the largest osprey we’d ever seen.

Since it was our last night in “paradise”, we decided to start a fire in the pit that was provided with our site, and enjoyed a couple of Coronas under the starlit sky, listening to the water lap up on the shore. Later that evening we got the call about Russ’ mom.

The next morning, bright and early, we pulled out of Long Key and headed for Clermont, FL, our home for the next 5 months. We arrived late afternoon and were greeted by our neighbors, Paul and Anne, who had anxiously been awaiting our arrival (more on them later).

A couple weeks earlier Russ’ sister and her husband had planned a getaway trip to Walt Disney World to coincide with her birthday. They were to arrive Thanksgiving Day and leave the following Tues., and we had offered to pick them up at the Orlando airport. With mom’s failing health no one was sure if they were going to make it, but when she passed a few days earlier, they decided to go ahead and make the trip. After picking them up at the airport, we took them to the Grand Floridian Resort, where they invited us up to the room, and then invited us to have dinner with them. We started the evening with drinks in Mizner’s Lounge, raising a toast to mom, and enjoyed a marvelous dinner at Narcoossee’s, both places located at the hotel. Though it was Thanksgiving Day, there was no turkey on the menu, but that was fine with us. We simply enjoyed each other’s company, relaxing and catching up, as well as a fabulous meal, and ended the evening back at Mizner’s for a nightcap.

In all the years they have come to WDW, Bill and Terri had never seen the Candlelight Processional so we decided to meet at Epcot the next night to catch the 5pm performance with guest narrator, Isabella Rossellini. The story, music, and pageantry were wonderful as always, but Isabella seemed a little tentative. She’s an excellent actress, but this was her first time narrating the performance plus it was the first show on the first night of the Processional…maybe that had something to do with it. But Terri loved it anyway and wanted to come back another night (poor Bill was freezing as the temperature had dropped and he had worn shorts and had no jacket).

We didn’t see them on Sat., but they called to invite us for dinner Sun. night. This time we ate at Shula’s Steak House in the Dolphin Resort. Named for Don Shula, former coach of the Miami Dolphins, each Steak House is themed after the 1972 undefeated Dolphins and their “Perfect Season”, with part of the menu hand painted on an official NFL football and signed by the Coach (no, you don’t get to keep it). Of course, it was another fabulous meal especially the crème brulee that Terri and I shared!

Terri had planned to do some shopping at Epcot the next day and invited me to tag along. I met her at 11am at the Canada Pavilion and discovered that Bill had decided to join us. We went through every single store in each of the countries, stopping for pastries in France and margaritas in Mexico! We also stopped in Japan to watch one of Bill’s favorites, Matsuriza. These Japanese Taiko drummers are some incredibly talented women. We were done around 2:30 and drove back to the RV to pick up Russ and head for Steak n’ Shake. It was one of the places Terri wanted to go while in town, and since they had no car, we were happy to oblige telling Terri it was her birthday present. :-) We're always ready for Steak n' Shake!

Afterwards we dropped Bill back at the hotel and drove to Disney Hollywood Studios to see the Osborne Family Lights, another thing Terri had never seen. We arrived shortly before 6pm, the time the Spectacle begins, and stood with hundreds of others in the middle of Streets of America. At precisely 6pm, more than 4 million lights that drape nearly everything in sight came on all at once accompanied by Christmas music and “snow flurries”, and I wish I’d had my camera pointed at Terri’s face. The look of surprise and amazement was priceless. No matter how much you read about it, nothing compares with experiencing it! As you may recall, back in the mid-80s Jennings Osborne of Little Rock, AR, began decorating his home with lights after his daughter made a simple request for some, but that simple request grew each year into a display of nearly 3 million lights that could be seen from miles away. Unfortunately some of his neighbors complained, and in 1994 the AR Supreme Court ruled that it was a public nuisance. Fortunately WDW heard about the display and in 1995 brought the lights to Disney World. Many of the three-dimensional and motion-based displays are those originally displayed at Osborne's home. A few years ago the Spectacle was enhanced to include choreographed “dancing” lights that move in time to the music every 15 minutes thanks to the magic of more than 400 dimmers. About half an hour later we left to head back over to Epcot to catch that evening’s last performance of the Candlelight Processional, this time narrated by John O’Hurley. (You may remember him from Seinfeld and Family Feud.) Though the story is the same every performance, each narrator brings his or her own personality to it, and he did an excellent job. Now it was time to scope out our spot to watch the Illuminations fireworks with its special holiday ending, which makes it even more spectacular.

The next day Bill and Terri enjoyed her birthday together by themselves, and at 6am Tues. morning we picked them up at their hotel to return them to the airport. We greatly enjoyed our time together, and it was the perfect thing we all needed to celebrate mom’s life.

In Loving Memory

Bernice A. Farmer
1918 – 2009

Bernice A. Farmer peacefully passed away at age 91 on Nov. 23 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s. Mom will be greatly missed by all that knew and loved her. She is survived by three children, Terri Johnson, Russ Farmer, and Ron Hunt, 6 grandchildren, and 5 great-grandchildren. We are thankful for the time she had with us and choose to celebrate her life instead of mourning her death. Funeral arrangements have not been finalized but she will be returned to her final resting place alongside her late husband, Clarence, her parents, and her brother at Calvary Cemetery in St. Louis, MO.

Fun On The Water

Though we missed the sunset in Key West, we’re sure that this one we experienced our first night back at Long Key State Park was just as spectacular as any they have down there, and this photo doesn’t do it justice.

This time our site was only 2 spaces from Dick and Beth, and they invited us for dinner Fri. They had been our guests the week before, and it’s always fun getting to know folks better over a scrumptious meal. As it so happens, the neighbor between our sites was a couple that Beth and Dick had met down here the year before. They didn’t know that Chris and Sue would be returning, and it was just a fluke that their site was between ours. They were also invited, and we all had a great time and a great meal.

Beth and Dick as well as Chris and Sue have Hobie kayaks. This type has foot pedals that are operated much like an exercise stepper and steering controls within an arm’s length that are easily maneuvered. Dick had offered us the use of his kayak several times the week before, and though we didn’t take him up on the offer then, I was determined to go out this time around. Fri. morning I met Dick at his boat (which was parked in the water right in front of his rig), and he took me out for a spin. What fun! After a short ride and getting the handle of how to operate it, he had me bring him back to shore and encouraged me to take it out on my own. Way cool! Chris and Sue had also offered the use of their kayak anytime I wanted to use it…this could become a habit!

Each boat can be equipped with a sail, and the next morning Dick took me out sailing. After a brief ride, we came back into shore, and he insisted on me sitting in the back to navigate the boat and the sail…yikes! But Dick is a good and patient teacher, and even though initially the boat was fighting me when turning to the right, we finally got headed in the direction we wanted to go. Dick said that the strong breeze and slightly choppy water were probably hindering my abilities to navigate. Soon Chris and Sue came out on their boat, and Russ was able to snap a picture of both boats sailing the ocean blue. That night Chris and Sue invited everyone to sit around the campfire they planned to build after dinner so we arrived with chairs and drinks in hand to spend another lovely evening under the stars with our new friends.










Dick and Beth were leaving the next day to head for Bahia Honda, and the night before we had decided that we wanted to get a group picture before they left. So precisely at 10 to 10 the next morning, the 6 of us met in front of the rigs with cameras and tripods in hand. Since they weren’t leaving till 1pm, Dick took me out sailing again. (I swear he’d live out on that boat if he could!) This time there was little breeze, the water was calm, and it was smooth sailing…what a difference. Chris and Sue were leaving the next morning (Mon.), and while they were out bike riding, I took their boat for a spin. I was definitely getting spoiled and going to miss not having either of the boats at my disposal. Oh, well, such is life.

Each Thurs. there is a ranger guided program here at Long Key State Park, and this week I was told that it would be kayaking. Woohoo! I had heard that beginning kayaking classes were done occasionally, so I was all excited to take a class to learn how to man a real kayak (meaning with an oar not bicycle pedaling). If you don’t have a kayak, one will be provided, and this is all free of charge. Russ drove me down to the meeting place and planned to take a couple pictures. I got myself situated in a boat, and then discovered that this was not going to be a Kayak 101 class, but rather a 2 hour ranger guided paddle along the shoreline! But wait…I’ve never done this before! I hadn’t brought a cover-up because I didn’t realize I’d be out on the water for 2 hours, so Russ offered his shirt for me to wear over my suit since the sun was beating down. There were 12 boats going on this excursion, and the ranger assured me it would be easy handling. Now it was time to get going, and off I went. Look at me…I’m manning a kayak all by myself! As we traveled along the shoreline, the rangers described the plants, birds, and sea critters we saw. What a great way to spend a couple hours, and I didn’t tip over! (Sorry, no photos of the trip since I didn’t want to chance dropping the camera in the water.)

By the way we finally discovered the identity of that sea creature we saw during our first week here. I had e-mailed the contact address on the park’s website with a general description of what we had seen. Park ranger, Marty Dillis, replied that he believed it was a Polka-Dot Batfish and attached the photo seen at left. The mystery was solved as it was indeed the creature, and after researching further online, this website gives an even clearer picture and description: http://www.biol.andrews.edu/everglades/organisms/vertebrates/fish/polka-dot_batfish/polka-dot_batfish.html.

This morning we awoke shortly before sunrise and walked the one mile Golden Orb Nature Trail hoping to see lots of birds. We did experience lots of mosquitoes but only saw a couple birds and several tiny crabs scampering back to their holes. Man, they can move fast!













When we returned to the RV, we found what we initially thought was a jellyfish laying on the beach. It appeared to be dead, but we know enough not to touch it because the tentacles can still sting. As it turns out, it was a Portuguese Man-of-War, and its sting can be very dangerous and painful!

Originally there was going to be 3 days between when we left here and when our winter reservations start in Clermont, and we had been debating whether to spend a couple nights at Monument Lake in Big Cypress again, or maybe 1 night and then spend a couple nights at a nearby campground in Clermont. Several times a day Russ would check the Long Key’s website on the off chance that there would be a cancellation so we could stay here a little longer. And that’s just what happened. We had to move to a different site yesterday, but we get to spend 3 more days (for a total of 13) in what we consider paradise. Alas, we leave for Clermont on Tues., but I leave you with some more photos of wildlife taken during our stay here.

Key West

We had been looking forward to staying at Bahia Honda State Park for several months as we had heard how beautiful the area was. However, after being there a few hours, we were happy that we had shortened our reservation from 9 nights to 3. We had become spoiled at Long Key with our site right on the ocean, and though this park has some sites on the water, we didn’t have one and those that we passed were not very impressive. Most have a view of the 7 mile bridge stretching across the channel between the Gulf of Mexico and the Florida Strait, and all the cars passing over it. Within this 524 acre state park there are 3 campgrounds but only 1 with sites large enough to accommodate RVs. Our site, though very large and surrounded by shrubbery, was directly across from the bath house, dumpster, and dump station…convenient but not very pretty. In fact, it seemed to us just like any other campground.

There are a few sandy beaches in the park, but it was too windy and overcast to enjoy on the days we were there. However, we saw about half a dozen young men parasailing, battling the wind and the waves, seeming to hang on for dear life, but evidently having a good time (you can see a couple of them in the left-hand corner of the photo on the right). We visited the park’s nature center that consists of a small marine aquarium, a sea life collection, displays of native plants and birds, and environmental learning activities for kids. Don’t get us wrong…we’d heard wonderful things about this park, and we’re sure there is much for many to enjoy there, but had we not stayed at Long Key first, we might have been more thrilled with Bahia Honda. Just can’t beat that view of the ocean right outside your window.

A trip to the Keys wouldn’t be complete without a visit to Key West, the southernmost city in the continental U.S., and since it was only 37 miles away, that’s where we headed Tues. afternoon. We had been there about 6 years ago for a few hours when it was a port stop on a cruise but decided to go again since we were so close. Parking down there can be difficult but we were fortunate to find a spot on the street at a parking meter (cheaper than the lots!) Strolling through Key West is always interesting with quite an eclectic mix of people wandering around and interesting sights to see. It’s basically a tourist trap with lots of restaurants, museums, and all the shops basically selling the same cheap stuff plus a few expensive galleries. In fact the place reminds us a lot of the French Quarter in New Orleans, and as someone said to us recently, “it’s a city for lost souls”. Seems there’s something for everyone, and you need to just go with the flow. Of course, it's one place where you can pick up a huge shark jaw for $15,000!

Having visited Hemingway’s House on our last visit, we skipped that area and headed towards Duval Street. As we approached the Key West Museum of Art & History at the restored 1891 Custom House, we could see a departing cruise ship behind the building heading for its next port of call. (Darn, we missed the boat!) The museum is surrounded by life-size bronze sculptures created by J. Seward Johnson. Many depict everyday life and at first glance appear almost real like the one pictured at right. The photographer in the green sweater is actually one of the bronze sculptures as is the painter at the top of the stairs. In addition to his life-size sculptures, Johnson also creates some larger than life pieces such as the one at left called “Whispering Close”. It was inspired by a Renoir painting and stands 20 feet tall. If you look closely towards the lower right of the sculpture (clicking on the picture will enlarge it), the woman in the aqua jogging suit walking and looking up at the piece is actually another one of his life-size sculptures. Behind the building is another piece entitled “Day Dream” and is based on a painting by Matisse with a slight twist. Pictured at right, it is actually two separate works of art that are interconnected. The sculpture artist is “painting” the three dimensional sculpture based on the painting, and the twist is that there’s a “young man” lying on the ground looking up at the dancers circling around him…he’s not in Matisse’s original painting. Just a whimsical bit of humor.

Roosters run free all over Key West, and as we continued our walk, we even spotted a hen and her chicks keeping cool under a bush. We walked up and down Duval St., looking at menus and in shop windows, and ended up at Caroline’s Café for a late lunch. Our table was outside, overlooking Duval St., and great for people watching. We began with an order of conch fritters, which are sort of like large hush puppies with pieces of conch mixed in (conch is a shellfish). They were ok, not great, as the conch pieces seemed kind of tough, but I just washed it down with my Rum Runner drink! The sandwiches we ordered, though, were huge and quite tasty. Russ had the largest shrimp po’ boy we’ve ever seen and I had the Cuban sandwich (roast pork, ham, cheese, pickles, and mustard on a Cuban roll, all lightly grilled). Both were served with fries giving us more than enough food!


The main focal point in Key West is Mallory Square, especially at sunset for their nightly event known as the Sunset Celebration (www.sunsetcelebration.org). Street performers abound as do food and craft vendors with the crowds enjoying the festivities as they wait to cheer a spectacular sunset. We arrived just in time to see a guy preparing to mount a giant unicycle, who was quite entertaining. We didn’t get his name but he was funny soliciting for tips as he performed. As each act ends, they try to steer you towards the next performer, and next up was Dr. Juice, the Calypso Tumbler, who grabbed a couple volunteers from the audience as he performed his aerial acrobatics. The guy is 54 years old and as part of his act did 20 handstand pushups...and could have easily done even more! His final act was jumping through a hoop that was being held on the back of a gal straddling a bike landing with a somersault on the concrete…pretty amazing! As he finished we headed in the opposite direction instead of towards the next performer as it was nearly time to head back to the car. It had been an overcast day so no spectacular sunset that night, but we had seen it last time we were here, and it pretty much looks like any other spectacular sunset. The next day we were heading back to Long Key.